


Dendroaspis angusticeps

by thepatchmatrix



Series: Serpentes [1]
Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst with a Happy Ending, Character Development, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Character Death, M/M, Pre-Relationship, Pre-Series, semi-graphic injury description
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-15
Updated: 2017-12-16
Packaged: 2019-02-15 00:39:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,220
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13019601
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thepatchmatrix/pseuds/thepatchmatrix
Summary: After Dai's death, Gai works himself into the ground. He finds purpose in an angry and secretive jounin.After the Yondaime's ascension, Orochimaru rethinks his life. He finds purpose in the memory of a hurting genin.They run, in four parts.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This started as a Crackship and became more serous the more I thought about it. Now, I'm mildly obsessed and upset that I can't find anything about these two. This is also probably OOC but I don't even care anymore.
> 
> **To address any concerns:**
> 
> **There will be nothing underage here!** Gai will be 19 when anything remotely romantic happens, prior to that their interaction is purely platonic!
> 
> The injury described is extreme muscle fatigue. It is not very graphic but I know some people are uncomfortable with any mention of injuries so I decided to throw that warning in the tags. This is in the second chapter and I will leave a more detail warning of when this appears in the notes in that chapter.
> 
> This first chapter is pretty short but more is to come! Please Enjoy!!

Gai _hated_ running. It was boring and tiring and made his lungs hurt. Every morning his father would drag him out of bed at a ridiculously early hour just to run monotonous laps around the village. And Gai would try, would keep his complaints to himself because he knew it was for the better. What good was strength without speed to back it up? You can be stronger than your opponent, but it won’t help if you can’t hit them.

So, Gai kept running, no matter how boring it was, no matter how much it hurt to see his father take off into the distance and leave him behind. Gai knew that one day he’d be able to keep up, be able to feel the sweet, sweet victory of surpassing his father if he just kept running.  And Gai was always up for a challenge.

What Gai _loved_ was practicing katas. Every afternoon, when Gai had finished at the academy and Dai had finished his missions for the day, they would meet at one of the more isolated training grounds. Though it was different each day, at least once a week they would spend their time slowly flowing through katas. There was no race, no challenge beyond maintaining the correct stance. Best of all, Gai wasn’t left behind. During these calm sessions, Gai could see the pride on his father’s face, hear it in his voice as they quietly discussed their days. While Gai had never doubted his father’s love, these moments reaffirmed it and made every taunt and moment of ridicule he faced outside the training ground all the less hurtful.

These were the moments he held close after his father died. These were also the moments that would hurt the most in those first days.

Running became a habit gained from loss. No matter the optimism Gai displayed every day of his life, even he was deeply affected by the death of his father. The shock and guilt almost consumed him those first few weeks. No matter the promises he’d made years before, when life was happy and his father seemed immortal, before Gai had had any grasp of his father’s life and the way others looked down on the ‘Eternal Genin’, Gai couldn’t continually move forward. Something had to give and, in the wake of his father’s sacrifice, Gai had been the thing to break.

After a week of pulling himself together, of sitting isolated and grieving at home, Gai finally pulled himself out of their-now-his apartment and went to the training grounds. Three minutes through his easiest set, movements he’d learned so young he couldn’t even remember a time when he didn’t know them, Gai broke more. The tears and ache that he’d thought stemmed overwhelmed him again. His movements became sloppy to the point they were almost unrecognizable. The pain was still too close for the familiar movements to comfort him.

So instead, he ran.

Every morning, no matter the time he woke, Gai ran. Laps around a training ground, circuits of the village, or even up and down a tree in one of the parks. Each step, each breath, occupied his mind. Every run would become a learning experience as the years passed. It would take longer for his lungs to hurt and the tired ache in his muscles would start to feel as good as finishing a complicated kata with his father. It would get to the point where he never wanted to stop.

 Stopping meant thinking. Stopping meant breaking down in the dirt and crying his heart out. Stopping meant failing. Stopping meant death.

Because that had happened. His father had finally stopped, the blood of four nin on his hands, and Gai had only watched as the bright chakra surrounding his father faded. Dai had died without a word, his life fading out too quick for Gai to catch. Once again, Dai was too fast and Gai was left behind. And this time, there was no way to catch up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Come yell at me on [tumblr!](http://thepatchmatrix.tumblr.com/)


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More Angst and actual character interaction!
> 
> As mentioned before, if you need/want to skip the injury description, when you see the paragraph that starts _"To the side of the path, a small boy in a ridiculous green jumpsuit..._ , skip past it. It's very short and basically says that Gai is lying on the ground in pain, chakra exhausted, and overworked. 
> 
> Other than that, please enjoy!!!

For months, no one noticed how far Gai pushed himself. Everyone close enough to see the destructive pattern behind Gai’s actions thought they were normal considering they were incredibly similar to the challenges Dai and Gai used to set together. No one noticed as the bruising and scars covering Gai grew to new heights. No one saw the grueling pace Gai set for himself every morning as he sped around the village. No one heard the muffled cries that rang through Gai’s apartment every night as his legs ached. No one asked why the overly cheerful and always considerate boy was growing into an irritated and tired man. No one looked closely enough to see how close he was to falling apart. And when he crashed, he crashed hard.

~*~

With a long, refreshing yawn, Orochimaru closed and secured the door to his lab. Waiting a moment for the small flash of chakra that signaled the activation of his various barrier seals, he started down the small, overgrown path back to the village. He’d spent the last week finishing projects for Danzo and compiling his work from the last month. He yawned again as he considered the newly inked seal on his wrist.

For the last decade, Danzo had ordered Orochimaru to pursue more and more projects without the purview of Hiruzen. And, while he was always ready to do anything in pursuit of his goals, he wasn’t a stupid man. He’d kept his written orders secreted away, but in recent years those orders slowly turned into smoothly worded suggestions with no paper trail. Instead, the man had turned to trying to manipulate Orochimaru into being the fall guy. And it had almost worked.  If Orochimaru hadn’t discovered the continued existence of the last child he’d imbued with the Shodaime’s cells, he would have been sucked fully into Root and readily followed along with Danzo’s plans.

So, instead of following blindly, convinced that Danzo had made him an equal partner in protecting the village, Orochimaru kept his head down and documented every meeting in exacting detail. Copies of every experiment, transcripts of every meeting, his thoughts on the suggestions, the implied orders, and anything else that might help in convincing Sensei that he was just following orders were now sealed into the new tattoo on his wrist. He may enjoy the chance to experiment and explore to his heart’s content, but he was still loyal his sensei and the concept of the village, if not its people.

Reaching the end of the trail, he gave his head a quick shake before turning towards the more populated paths around the village.

“I…will not…fail…”

Orochimaru’s head whipped around. He hadn’t felt a single person, shinobi or civilian, anywhere close to his lab or this part of the forest.

To the side of the path, a small boy in a ridiculous green jumpsuit was trying to pull himself along the ground. His feet were visibly swollen inside his sandals and the bright orange warmers around his legs were in tatters. His chakra was almost non-existent. Clearly, the kid had overworked himself to the point of severe injury and, from the way he was moving, was determined to ignore it.

He was tempted to disregard the genin, but the sheer bullheadedness the kid was displaying was such a sharp reminder of his wayward teammates that he almost smiled. Instead, he heaved a sigh that was just short of put-upon and strode over to the kid.

“From the look of your legs, I suggest turning your crawl towards the hospital instead of the edge of the village,” he suggested as he looked down at the boy.

“No! I must f-finish!” the boy’s arm visibly shook as he extended it to pull himself forward, “I will get stronger!”

Tilting his head in bemusement, Orochimaru crouched down, “Not listening to your body is in direct opposition to your goal. While gaining strength does require rigorous training, the body must be allowed to rest and heal to cement that strength. Overworking it, like you have clearly been doing, can and will have detrimental effects that, ultimately, limit possibility.”

The boy stopped mid pull. He took a deep, stuttering breath and clenched his jaw briefly before saying, “I do not have time to wait for my body to heal. I must get stronger. If I s-stop I’ll…I…”

Tears began to build in his eyes as he fell silent and resumed trying to crawl forward.

Orochimaru’s wrist itched fiercely, his heartbeat pulsing under the tattooed skin.

“Fine,” Orochimaru answered, “Then we’ll do this the Jiraiya way.”

In a flash, he reached out and grabbed the genin’s arm. With one fluid movement, he stood and pulled the boy onto his back. Leaning forward slightly, he released the boy’s arm to hook his hands under the boy’s legs. Then, before the kid could protest, he turned and headed towards the hospital with a relaxed pace.

“Hey! No! Put me down!” the boy protested, “I still have ten laps!”

Orochimaru shook his head slightly so as not to dislodge his burden, “You can finish those laps another day. Preferably after your body has healed.”

The boy continued to protest for a few minutes before falling silent. Orochimaru assumed he was fuming silently until he felt the tell-tale shake of crying. He slowed and carefully turned his head. The boy was sobbing silently, his face a picture of pure anguish. In all truth, Orochimaru had expected the kid to be crying out of fear or frustration, not this deep sorrow. It reminded him of those first days after his parent’s deaths. It also reminded him of how he would actively seek distractions to keep from breaking down like the boy was doing.

“How many laps did you complete?” He asked, genuinely curious as he resumed his previous pace.

There was a moment of silence before the boy composed himself, “75.”

Well, that hadn’t been what he expected at all, “On the long path around the village?”

“Yes, my goal is…was 85,” the boy’s voice was barely above a whisper.

Before he could stop it Orochimaru found himself asking, “Why?”

The boy was silent and still for so long that he almost thought the boy had fallen asleep.

“Because I need to prove them wrong.”

“Them?” Orochimaru prompted when it was clear the boy wasn’t going to expound upon his statement.

“The villagers. They think-thought my dad was a bad ninja just because he couldn’t use chakra. But he was really strong! And he never got a promotion but he trained really hard so he was tired during missions! But he’s a better ninja than most of the village and he saved us and killed four of the swordsmen of the mist and he opened the eight gates and he died because I was too weak so I have to be strong and— and— I hate them! I hate all of them!“

And the crying was back. Having finally reached the edge of the village, Orochimaru was quick to find a bench and carefully set the boy on it. Crouching down in front of him, he considered the kid for a moment. From what the boy had said, he must be Maito Dai’s son. He’d known the man in passing and, looking at the bright green jumpsuit again, he wondered how he hadn’t immediately made the connection.

“And how will hurting yourself prove them wrong?”

The boy shook his head, “I don’t know! I just— I need to be strong! And I don’t have anyone to protect so this is the only way to do it!”

Orochimaru desperately wanted to scream or kill something, whichever got him out of this situation faster. Strength through protecting loved ones was a surprisingly common motivation among the shinobi of Konoha. And since he didn’t personally subscribe to the philosophy, considering he also didn’t have any loved ones left in the land of the living, Orochimaru was at a loss for words. The last time he’d tried to console the remaining member of a family, she’d sworn to never again step foot in the village and left to developed an extreme gambling addiction.

Unfortunately, Orochimaru had to try when the next words out of the kid’s mouth were, “I don’t have anything else to live for.”

That was alarming statement coming from anybody, but especially the spawn of the actual-personification-of-sunshine, Maito Dai.

“What about your friends? Or your team?”

The boy scoffed, “I don’t have any friends. Kakashi hardly tolerates me. And Genma and Ebisu don’t talk to me anymore, not since Dad died.”

“And your sensei?”

“Chouza-sensei is barely in the village, and even then, he’s usually with his old team. We only meet to receive missions and run team drills.”

After he got the kid to the hospital, Orochimaru would have to find a reason to visit Akimichi Chouza’s wife. The man was going to get a shrill earful. Hopefully _he_ would deal with the teammates.

“Then you need to find something else to live for.”

Orochimaru could almost hear Jiraiya’s sardonic laughter. Of all the people to be giving life advice to an impressionable genin, it had to be him?

Tears finally stopped, the boy looked at him in confusion, “Something else…?”

 _Of course_ he had to spell it out for him, “Yes, something else. Like the satisfaction of learning a new jutsu or the look on your teammate’s face when you beat them in a spar or—“

“Can you live out of anger?” asked the boy, his eyes sharp as he stared at Orochimaru.

Once again, he was left off-kilter. That line of thought had come out of nowhere. And what could he even say to that? A sane person would disagree because negative emotions were considered bad for a reason, even if small amounts were healthy, if only to put the rest of your life in perspective. But he would be a hypocrite if he answered negatively because wasn’t his entire life based around his anger at his parents’ killers? He’d spent years becoming one of the most lethal shinobi in the elemental countries _specifically_ to exact a twisted sort of vengeance on the village’s enemies in honor of what they’d died for. And in the end, that anger and the spite that came with it were the only things keeping him in Konoha.

Staring back at the boy, he answered, “Yes, anger works just fine.”

The boy nodded, expression serious and contemplative.

“Now,” Orochimaru said as he stood, “Let’s get you to the hospital.”

The boy stayed silent for the rest of the walk, but just as they reached the gate leading into the hospital grounds, he whispered with determined conviction, “I’ll get strong in spite of the villagers. One day, I’ll prove just how wrong they are. Thank you.”

Orochimaru hummed in quiet acknowledgement as they passed through the front doors. It would be interesting to see how far the kid went, especially with the increased danger the war presented. Maybe the kid would make it to jounin in a few years, maybe he would die choking on his own blood in a battlefield next week.

The future was never a certainty, but now, looking at the kid as one of the nurses wheeled him through the doors into the treatment area, Orochimaru felt an almost forgotten twinge of hope. There was something about the kid that was incredibly, intimately familiar. It was the burning in his eyes, a hunger to become something greater, to prove to the world that he wasn’t what they thought he was. It was what Orochimaru used to see in the mirror before time and the villagers had taken their toll. And it was startling to realize that it was gone.

Shaking his head incredulously, he refocused on the world around him and set off toward the village proper. He needed food and sleep and not this bout of soul searching brought on by a tiny ninja.

His wrist ached.

It wasn’t until he was through his third skewer of tamagoyaki as he walked back to his apartment that he realized that he’d never asked the kid his name.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Come yell at me on [tumblr!](http://thepatchmatrix.tumblr.com/)


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No Gai in this one, but we get a change of heart and the turning point for our favorite snake-man! (I feel like the characterization is a little off in this one, but I am banking on the fact that he's also making a huge decision about who he is, so hopefully ya'll find this within acceptable measures?)
> 
> Please Enjoy!!

He sat, legs pulled to his chest, back pressed into the wall and arms wrapped around himself in the destruction that was once his lab. Broken equipment and scattered papers blanketed the floor. His main lab bench was up-ended and missing one of its legs. Only two lightbulbs survived the carnage, casting the previously bright lab in an eerie light. Across from him, a scroll sat unopened on the floor in front of the door. It was an odd spot of calm in the whirlwind that was the rest of the room.

Over the years, scrolls like the one before him had slowly stopped being given, the words inside the only concrete evidence that he was working under orders and not just for personal gain. Scrolls that now signaled Danzo’s belief that he was entirely within Root’s thrall. And with the appointment of the Yondaime going to Namikaze Minato instead of Orochimaru, the temptation to give in was incredibly powerful.

So many things had gone wrong in his life. From the day his parents died, everything had continually spiraled out of his control. No matter how hard he held on, eventually whatever he cared for or thought certain would be ripped away. He really shouldn’t have been surprised.

He let out a stuttering breath before considering the rest of his lab. It had been years since he’d experienced anger to such a potent degree and his surroundings had paid for it. He needed to clean up.

Finally moving his arms, he attempted to stand. Legs aching, he used the wall to steady himself. His movement across the room was stilted, though it was more from reluctance to open the scroll than any remaining stiffness. As he reached down, his eyes caught on the seal on his wrist. The seal that started to ache as he considered the possibilities. The seal that he’d tattooed on the same week he’d met that strange, little genin.

Brow furrowed, he stood back up, scroll forgotten as he contemplated the seal. He’d made it as a failsafe, a way to insure Sensei would believe him over Danzo. Back when the taste of betrayal was strong. Back when he’d been sure the man would turn on him. Back when he’d taken a tired and hurting kid to the hospital.

And that same kid had found a reason to live in the same motivation he did, yet had taken it in an entirely new direction. While Orochimaru had allowed his anger to fester into hate, to push him to become an aloof and arrogant shinobi at the top of the ranks, the little genin had shoved his personality and determination right in the faces of the villagers. Where Konoha saw Orochimaru as a creepy genius, the genin was considered a lovable oddity. Both were fueled by spite, yet somehow, the child had done something Orochimaru had never been able to manage.

It was both a blow to his confidence and something to learn from. If a little boy, who had been so full of anger that he’d almost destroyed himself trying to prove them wrong, had managed to make his point, then Orochimaru could shift his anger from destroying his enemies to subverting his image among the villagers. And sitting on the floor in front of him was more evidence that he needed to change course before it destroyed him completely.

Reaching down for the scroll, he opened it to find orders that, while not nearly as horrifying to him as they would be to anyone else, were still beyond the realm of acceptable by most shinobi’s morals. And they were written down, clear as day. Danzo thought he had him collared, like a loyal dog.

Danzo was very, _very_ , wrong.

In less than a second, Orochimaru had added the scroll to the extensive collection already inside the seal on his wrist. Taking one last look at the destruction around him, he left and headed straight for the Hokage’s office at a run. While he didn’t trust the man behind the desk nearly as much as he trusted Sensei, today he would take a leap of faith. It was his turn to take the lead on his life, and if that required starting with one last bout of uncertainty, then he would just have to deal. Now, it was his turn to prove the villagers wrong.

~*~

Orochimaru could see the moment Sensei fully realized what had happened under his nose. It wasn’t a dramatic change, just a shift in his eyebrows and a tightening of his lips. But what really made the difference obvious was the look in his eyes. There was no disappointment or reproof like Orochimaru had been expecting. Instead there was an intense anger that he’d never had directed at him.

In that moment, Orochimaru felt absolute terror. He knew what he’d done, knew how the rest of the village viewed him, but he didn’t think his teacher would direct so much hatred toward him. He had been following orders no matter how willing he’d been to explore the possibilities presented to him. But now, seeing just how much it effected his teacher, he felt disgust and anger towards himself.

How _had_ he fallen so far? When had avenging his parents become gaining power at all costs? When had he become the monster the village thought he was? When did experimenting on children, orphans like himself, become an acceptable act?

There was a hand on his shoulder.

“Oro, are you with me?”

He looked up right into his Sensei’s eyes. Burning fury had been replaced with apologetic sadness. In the wake of his teacher’s rage, he’d lost his careful, calm façade. For the first time since he was a genin, he’d actually succumbed to a bout of killing intent. His cheeks reddened with embarrassment.

“I’m sorry, my anger isn’t directed at you. Clearly,” Hiruzen gestured to the pile of documents Minato was slowly sifting through, “you were acting under orders. I just wish you had come to me sooner.”

“I-It was for the g-good of the village. We were at war,” he stuttered, the flush on his cheeks growing brighter. Damn his pale skin.

Pity flickered through Hiruzen’s eyes. Who was he trying to kid? War was a weak excuse. No matter how dire the situation, how close the village came to losing, the inhumane acts he’d performed under Danzo’s authority were never justified. And yet, he hadn’t seen it, had been blinded by the sheer power he had at his fingertips as he played god in his lab.

His remorse must have been clear on his face, because Hiruzen and Minato traded a short look before Minato left, Anbu in tow. Sensei gently led Orochimaru to the couch to the right of the Hokage’s desk. From there, they could see most of the village as the sun began to set. Orange and red light spilled across the room, highlighting the pictures of the former Hokages where they hung above the door. The pile of scrolls and papers on the desk was backlit, casting it in a dark silhouette.

“I’m sorry.”

Orochimaru looked to his teacher, startled, “What?”

“I should have been there for you. Danzo wouldn’t have gotten his hands on you if I’d just paid more attention,” In the waning light, Orochimaru finally saw just how old his teacher had grown.

“No, Sensei, you paid plenty of attention, I just thought I needed more power and he was an easy way to get it!”

Hiruzen shook his head and looked over the village with tired eyes, “You don’t remember, do you?”

“Remember…?”

“Back, during our team introduction. The first words that came out of your mouth were ‘I want to be strong!’ You didn’t even tell me your name until Tsunade snacked you and told you to introduce yourself properly. Back then, you wanted to be strong in your parent’s memory.”

This was…. unexpected. Thinking back, it was hard to remember those early days. Everything from before the second war was so far away, so different from who he was toady, that recalling any specific memory not related to the death of his parents was almost impossible.

Hiruzen watched as Orochimaru’s brow furrowed in concentration.

“Unfortunately,” Hiruzen continued, “With the second war on the horizon, I had to ask some of the jounin to handle your training some days. Danzo volunteered often. I used to think it was a gesture of goodwill, an olive branch after I was given the title over him. But now, well, hindsight is 20/20, as they say.”

“I still don’t…Sensei, what do you mean?”

“It wasn’t until after Danzo started working with you three in the field that your team dynamics began to falter. I thought it was hormones since you were all approaching puberty by that time. Before, you weren’t expressive with your feelings, but you weren’t cold. Not like you’ve been for the past decade.”

While most of his memories were still cloaked in fog, one came to mind with startling clarity.

“It was the courier mission to the Suna border. Jiraiya was injured in an ambush, so Tsunade stayed back to heal him. I wanted to stay too, but Danzo ordered me to continue with him. The intelligence was vital to the effort, so I didn’t argue. Tsunade was so pissed, I think I had that bruise for a month,” he chuckled a bit before resuming his serious tone, “But, I think that was when I started to value missions over the team.”

Hiruzen sighed and rubbed a hand over his face, “I wish one of you had come to me,” He held up a hand before Orochimaru could protest, “Yes, I understand. With the war, I was incredibly busy with the village, but,” He turned and to look straight at Orochimaru, “You were my team. I should have been there for you, if not as your teacher than at least as a friend.”

“You’ll always be my sensei, Sensei.”

Hiruzen shot him a fond glare of annoyance and shook his head, “My point still stands. I should have been more attentive.”

Orochimaru sighed, “Let’s just agree to disagree, yes?”

Sensei raised an eyebrow in his direction but didn’t say anything. They sat in silence, watching as the last rays of sunlight disappear beneath the horizon.

“You’ll have to be watched, if only as a formality,” Hiruzen said quietly, regret in his voice.

“I’d expected as much,” He admitted, “I don’t think I’ll mind though. I’m tired of…everything.”

Chuckling, Hiruzen stood and stretched, his back cracking audibly, “If you’re tired, then imagine how I feel. Come, it’s late and I’m hungry. Shushu-ya?”

Orochimaru smiled and followed him to the door, “My treat.”

They were halfway down the tower when Orochimaru paused and asked, “Maito Dai’s son…What’s his name?”

Confused, Hiruzen gave him a searching look before answering, “Gai, Maito Gai.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Come yell at me on [tumblr!](http://thepatchmatrix.tumblr.com/)


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Look! More interaction! Please Enjoy!! :D

There was a spot of water damage on his ceiling that looked like a coiled snake. He squinted. Had it gotten bigger? Shaking his head, he laid back on his bed and sighed.

Yesterday, he’d finished the Jounin Exam. And he’d been promoted. His new vest was sitting on his desk, the pockets already filled with his usual mission stock. Gai turned to stare at it.

This was what he’d worked so hard for. Focusing on taijutsu and rarely using chakra beyond enhancing his body meant he’d spent thousands of hours working hard to reach this point. But, in the end, nothing felt different. Back when he found his goal, he’d been convinced that the world would be different, better once he’d finally reached it.

Now, he just felt lost. What was he supposed to do? He’d proven his point. Everyone knew that you didn’t need chakra to be an amazing shinobi. His father had never made it this far, had never had the time, had died long before he could prove the villagers wrong. So Gai had done it for him. And yet…?

And yet.

Gai glanced at the clock. Three in the morning wasn’t too early for a run, right?

~*~

No shinobi truly let their mind go blank, no matter how safe their surroundings were. There had been many training exercises when he was a genin that specifically dealt with awareness and the lack of true security. Gai was pretty sure he still had some scars from Chouza-sensei’s particularly cruel brand of awareness training. Now, the only time he felt his head come close to the same empty clarity of childhood was when he ran.

Running hadn’t felt hard in years. Ever since that fateful day when the weird jounin, who he later discovered was the supposedly heartless Orochimaru, had pulled him out of despair and set him on his current path, Gai had been focused. But, was that his path anymore? He’d reached his goal by proving that he could be better than most through hard work alone. And that spite that had fueled him had petered out in the last few years. What was left for him now?

Gai’s legs slowed, his body automatically shifting gears towards cool-down. While Gai could run for literal days, he rarely made runs longer than a few hours. It was a habit long established. Ever since that day, when he’d finally self-destructed and almost ruined his potential, he’d been extremely attentive of his limits and knew when and where to push it. The careful consideration of his body then opened new paths of improvement. Now, he knew how to be strong, how to manage his potential, but what reason was there to be strong?

Ahead, a small spike of chakra caught Gai’s attention. All doubts fled from his head as he focused on the presence in front of him. He recognized it immediately.

Standing in the center of the path was Orochimaru. His hair was pulled into a bun and Gai could see the sharp ends of the hair knives holding it in place glint in the moonlight. They considered each other for a long, silent moment.

“Thank you.”

Gai, his mouth open and ready to thank the man who had saved his life, blinked in confusion, “What do you mean? I should be the one thanking you! You saved me from destroying myself!”

Orochimaru’s lip quirked in a small smile, “And you did the same for me, though in a different way. Therefore, I thank you.”

As the other man turned to go, Gai finally registered where they were in the village, “Why were you in the cemetery?”

He immediately regretted his entire life as he watched Orochimaru’s form tense. He backtracked, “I’m s-sorry! I don’t know why I asked that! I just have this really bad habit of blurting out random thoughts an—”

The tension was gone when Orochimaru turned back to face Gai head on, expression calm, “No need to worry. I was just visiting my parents. I was out of the village for my mother’s birthday, so I came as soon as possible.”

“O-oh, I’m sorry for your loss,” Gai’s posture slowly relaxed from how he’d unconsciously curled in on himself.

There was a small spark in Orochimaru’s eyes that was gone before Gai could identify it, “Thank you, they passed a long time ago,” He paused a moment before continuing, “Why are you running so early the morning after your jounin exam? Was the tournament not enough to wear out your boundless energy?”

Now that the other man had mentioned it, Gai could feel the pull of exhaustion in his bones. He glanced down sheepishly, a slight blush spreading across his cheeks, “No, I just needed some air.”

Gai jumped at a sudden hand on his shoulder. Orochimaru’s eyes glinted in amusement, “Well, since I hear congratulations are in order, how about we see which vendors are pulling a late shift? I know Ichiraku stays open a few nights a week, though not what days specifically.”

“Food sounds fabulous,” Gai agreed.

They walked into the village in companionable silence.

~*~

While Ichiraku’s had been closed, one of the smaller vendors along the marketplace had given them bowls of leftover curry, free of charge. Gai had been particularly appreciative of the spicy food. After finishing, they regarded each other silently in the growing light of dawn.

 “It’s much too late to go to bed, but still too early to report for duty, I think,” Orochimaru said, breaking the comfortable silence.

“Yes, sleep would be useless now,” Gai agreed.

Stared at each other for another moment.

“So—”

“I—”

More silence. Gai blushed. Orochimaru let out a breathy chuckle.

“Would you like t-to watch the sunrise with me?” Gai asked, his head ducked in embarrassment.

Smile small and genuine, Orochimaru looked fondly at the man before him, “I would love to.”

~*~

They sat and watched as dawn spread over the village from the Hokage Monument. A slight breeze swirled around them. Silence blanketed them like a cloak, but neither felt a need to break it. Instead, they sat and let the light of the new day grow.

Below them, the village awoke. Doors opened, dogs barked, and kids laughed as they played in the streets. Gai smiled. He’d never stopped loving the village, no matter how angry he’d been, but now he found himself loving the people who occupied it, who created it. And maybe, just maybe, that would be enough. Anger had no place in his life and hadn’t for a few years now. He’s just never realized it until this moment.

 Looking to his companion, the man who had been the first person to care for him after the death of his father, the man who’d pulled him out of his spiral of depression and set him firmly on the path to happiness and love, Gai’s smile grew into a grin.

Orochimaru had his eyes closed and head thrown back, long neck exposed as the sunlight slowly grew. A few strands of hair had fallen from his bun and were hanging along his back. His expression was peaceful, the barest hint of a smile on his lips. Gai felt his heart stutter.

“You’re staring.”

Gai huffed out a quiet laugh and, high on his recent realization, said, “Where else should I be looking?”

Orochimaru’s cheeks flushed a bright red but he didn’t move, “Perhaps the sunrise we came up here for?”

“Maybe in a bit.”

The other man finally opened his eyes and turned to Gai, eyebrow raised but expression amused. They silently considered each other for a moment.

“I think that new tonkatsu place near the academy is opening soon,” Gai paused to take a steadying breath, “W-would you be amenable to going to the grand opening with me?”

Orochimaru was quiet as he stared at Gai. Gai felt his heart sink as the silence grew longer and longer. Had he read the situation wrong? Was this another foot-in-mouth moment? Then, with a fond sigh, the other man answered, “As long as this doesn’t go beyond platonic until after you’re 18. You may be an adult in the eyes of the law and in every way that matters, but I am in my 40s and I still have some morals left in this dead heart.”

It took a moment for Oroichmaru’s words to register and then Gai fell back, laughing uproariously. When he finally caught his breath, he gasped out, “I turn 20 next month, how old do you think I am?” before falling back into laughter.

Beside him, Orochimaru broke into his own relieved bout of laughter, “Thank kami, I thought I was going to have to re-examine my morals for thinking a 16-year-old was hot.”

Gai’s laughter had slowed to the occasional chuckle, “You really thought I could make jounin at 16?”

“Well, you are ‘youthful’ enough, aren’t you?” Orochimaru quipped back.

That set off another round of laughter between them.

“But seriously, you thought I was 16?” Gai finally asked as they settled down.

“You are incredibly strong,” Orochimaru replied, his tone matter-of-fact, “With what I saw when we first met, I was sure you would be a jounin in no time. And I’ve never been good at guessing ages.”

Gai blushed and ducked his head, the praise filling him with a deep sense of satisfaction, “You saw all of that in a broken genin? Truly?”

“Yes. You have the passion and diligence to be one of the strongest shinobi in the elemental countries. You just needed to pace yourself.”

Gai’s blush deepened and he shook his head slightly before abruptly changing the subject, “So, now that you know my true age, still up for that date?”

Expression clearly indicating that their discussion wasn’t over, Orochimaru nodded, “I would love to.”

Gai grinned wide, eyes alight with excitement, but before he could say anything more, there was a cry of a bird from above. They sighed in tandem and look up at the hawk summoning the jounin of the village.

“And work calls,” Gai’s voice was a touch disappointed. He turned back to Orochimaru, “Run with me?”

“Of course.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, this is what I have written so far for this pairing and series. While I have stuff planned, I also have a huge WIP folder that needs addressing. (And I can finally do that because I finally graduated college! Whoot!) But there will be more eventually, that is a promise!
> 
> As always, you're always welcome to come yell at me on [tumblr!](http://thepatchmatrix.tumblr.com/)


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